Genuine Kansas - Largest Ball of Twine

Several places brag that they have the biggest ball of twine. These include Darwin, Minnesota (for largest ball of sisal twine built by an individual), Cawker City, Kansas (for largest ball of twine built by a community), Lake Nebagamon, Wisconsin (for heaviest ball of twine), Valleyview, Texas (for largest twine ball ever built).

Largest sisal twine ball built by one person Darwin, Minnesota is the home of a ball by Francis A. Johnson. It is 4m in diameter and weighs 17,400 pounds. He started his obsession in March, 1950 and wrapped four hours every day for 23 weeks. It is currently housed in a specially made gazebo across from the town park on Main Street, and the town celebrates "Twine Ball Day" every August. An adjacent volunteer-run museum and gift shop has displays on the ball's history as well as selling a variety of souvenirs. Largest sisal twine ball built by a community Another ball was started in Cawker City, Kansas by Frank Stoeber. He saw Johnson's ball as a challenge and started his own. Stoeber had 1.6 million feet of twine on his 11-foot diameter ball when he died in 1974. Cawker City built an open-air gazebo over Stoeber's ball where every August a "Twine-a-thon" is held and more twine is added to the ball. As of 2003, the twine ball has reached 17000 lbs, a circumference of 40 feet, with a length of over 7,000,000 feet. This is now the world's largest and heaviest ball of sisal twine. This should not be confused with the world's biggest ball of string, which was put together on 23rd May 1985 by locals in Sheffield's Lowfield area. The ball of string is currently on display outside Sheffield United's Bramall Lane stadium. Heaviest ball of twine ever built In Lake Nebagamon, Wisconsin, James Frank Kotera, who likes to be known as JFK, claims to have made the biggest ball of twine ever built. He started it in 1979 and is still working. JFK estimates, by measuring the weight of each bag of twine that he winds on, that the ball weighs 19,336 lbs, making it the heaviest ball of twine ever built. The ball is housed in an open-air enclosure in JFK's lawn. The ball has a smaller companion, "Junior", that is made of string. Largest twine ball ever built Yet another ball claims the title of largest ball of twine in the world and this one has allegedly been certified by the Guinness Book of World Records. It is owned by Ripley's Believe It or Not in Branson, Missouri and was reportedly built by millionaire J. C. Payne of Valleyview, Texas. By using a "system of pulleys" Payne claims he built the ball in four years all by himself. The ball measures 41.5 feet in diameter.